County's wise to play role in local growth

Published: Friday, November 22, 2013 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, November 21, 2013 at 5:16 p.m.

Henderson County commissioners are wise to pledge the county’s support to help Wingate University and the Rescue Squad expand beyond outgrown facilities, provided it does not lead to excessive expenditure of tax dollars.

Without committing any funds, commissioners voted 5-0 Wednesday to direct county staff to investigate options to assist Wingate and the Rescue Squad in expanding their capacity to serve local residents.

Service is the key reason the county should be involved in both ventures. The Rescue Squad saw calls for service increase 20 percent during the first three quarters of this year and has no space for meetings or training in its overcrowded 14,000-square-foot complex on Williams Street.

As for Wingate, the university had to lease 2,000 square feet in the HomeTrust Bank building across the street from its 11,000-square-foot facility on Fifth Avenue East, which is filled to capacity. The crunch has been fueled by demand for its new physician assistant program. Enrollment is expected to jump from 80 students this year to 127 by 2015, Wingate President Jerry McGee said. By 2016, the school anticipates adding a physical therapy program to its MBA, physician assistant and pharmacy curriculums.

These are valuable additions to local educational offerings at Blue Ridge Community College that will allow residents to train for careers in the high-growth health care sector without leaving Henderson County. Officials at Wingate say they are working to make sure they don’t duplicate offerings at the community college. And they are talking with BRCC officials about the possibility of locating near that campus.

“It would be a tremendous plus, I think, for a student to come to BRCC without any credits, go through their (associate’s degree) program and go through a couple of Wingate programs for a master’s degree or doctorate, without leaving the county,” McGee said.

A key reason university officials are interested in property near BRCC is access to I-26 so that students can easily get to clinical rotations at area hospitals. With the long-awaited widening of Upward Road nearing completion, locating the university near BRCC seems to make more sense than at the old Grey Hosiery Mill in downtown Hendersonville, the previous location university officials considered and later rejected.

The university is considering offering other programs, including possibly nursing and advanced degree programs for teachers, and needs 25,000 to 30,000 square feet of space to accommodated projected growth, McGee says.

“We’re either going to have to build it, or find something to renovate, or partner with the county to build it,” he said. If the county builds a facility at BRCC or elsewhere, he said a long-term lease “would work great for us.”

If the county ends up building a facility specifically for Wingate, commissioners will need to ensure that it recoups its investment either through a long-term lease or sale. With health care occupations a sure bet for growth, a partnership between the county and the university holds multiple benefits for residents and the economy.

<p>Henderson County commissioners are wise to pledge the county’s support to help Wingate University and the Rescue Squad expand beyond outgrown facilities, provided it does not lead to excessive expenditure of tax dollars.</p><p>Without committing any funds, commissioners voted 5-0 Wednesday to direct county staff to investigate options to assist Wingate and the Rescue Squad in expanding their capacity to serve local residents.</p><p>Service is the key reason the county should be involved in both ventures. The Rescue Squad saw calls for service increase 20 percent during the first three quarters of this year and has no space for meetings or training in its overcrowded 14,000-square-foot complex on Williams Street.</p><p>As for Wingate, the university had to lease 2,000 square feet in the HomeTrust Bank building across the street from its 11,000-square-foot facility on Fifth Avenue East, which is filled to capacity. The crunch has been fueled by demand for its new physician assistant program. Enrollment is expected to jump from 80 students this year to 127 by 2015, Wingate President Jerry McGee said. By 2016, the school anticipates adding a physical therapy program to its MBA, physician assistant and pharmacy curriculums.</p><p>These are valuable additions to local educational offerings at Blue Ridge Community College that will allow residents to train for careers in the high-growth health care sector without leaving Henderson County. Officials at Wingate say they are working to make sure they don’t duplicate offerings at the community college. And they are talking with BRCC officials about the possibility of locating near that campus.</p><p>It would be a tremendous plus, I think, for a student to come to BRCC without any credits, go through their (associate’s degree) program and go through a couple of Wingate programs for a master’s degree or doctorate, without leaving the county, McGee said.</p><p>A key reason university officials are interested in property near BRCC is access to I-26 so that students can easily get to clinical rotations at area hospitals. With the long-awaited widening of Upward Road nearing completion, locating the university near BRCC seems to make more sense than at the old Grey Hosiery Mill in downtown Hendersonville, the previous location university officials considered and later rejected.</p><p>The university is considering offering other programs, including possibly nursing and advanced degree programs for teachers, and needs 25,000 to 30,000 square feet of space to accommodated projected growth, McGee says.</p><p>We’re either going to have to build it, or find something to renovate, or partner with the county to build it, he said. If the county builds a facility at BRCC or elsewhere, he said a long-term lease would work great for us.</p><p>If the county ends up building a facility specifically for Wingate, commissioners will need to ensure that it recoups its investment either through a long-term lease or sale. With health care occupations a sure bet for growth, a partnership between the county and the university holds multiple benefits for residents and the economy.</p>